Alert archive / Alabama / Red Flag Warnings in 2012

Red Flag Warning 17, NWS Birmingham, AL

October 18, 201212 counties in Alabama

NWS Birmingham, AL issued this red flag warning at Oct 18, 2012, 3:24 PM CDT for 12 counties in Alabama. It took effect at Oct 19, 2012, 12:00 PM CDT. It was in force for 7 hr. No storm report in the archive falls inside the area while it was in force.

The area

The counties it named.

The facts

Issued
Oct 18, 2012, 3:24 PM CDT (20:24 UTC)
In effect from
Oct 19, 2012, 12:00 PM CDT
Expired
Oct 19, 2012, 7:00 PM CDT
In force
7 hr
Issued by
NWS Birmingham, AL

Counties Autauga County, AL, Barbour County, AL, Bullock County, AL, Chambers County, AL, Elmore County, AL, Lee County, AL, Lowndes County, AL, Macon County, AL, Montgomery County, AL, Pike County, AL, Russell County, AL, Tallapoosa County, AL

The nearest sounding before it

Birmingham, AL (KBMX), launched 12:00Z, 8.4 hours before the alert went out and 126 km from the middle of its area. This is the routine balloon launch nearest before it, the air the forecaster had in hand, not a measurement taken for the alert.

Skew-T log-pSkew-T log-p diagram, Birmingham, AL at 12:00Z on 2012-10-18Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 390 joules per kilogram.LCLLFCEL10008507005003002001001 km2 km3 km6 km9 km12 km15 km-30°-20°-10°10°20°30°40°
Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed.
HodographHodograph, Birmingham, AL at 12:00Z on 2012-10-18The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 193 square meters per square second.1939587897Sfc1 km3 km6 km9 kmRMLM
The wind turning with height, colored by layer: ground to 1 km, 1 to 3 km, 3 to 6 km, 6 to 10 km.
Mixed-layer CAPE
390 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-8 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
463 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
69 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
193 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
98 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.1
Supercell composite
0.7

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

As transmitted, in the capitals the NWS used until 2016.

566 
WWUS84 KBMX 182024
RFWBMX

URGENT - FIRE WEATHER MESSAGE
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BIRMINGHAM AL
324 PM CDT THU OCT 18 2012

...DRY AND BREEZY CONDITIONS EXPECTED FRIDAY AFTERNOON SOUTHEAST...

ALZ037-038-041>050-200000-
/O.NEW.KBMX.FW.W.0017.121019T1700Z-121020T0000Z/
TALLAPOOSA-CHAMBERS-AUTAUGA-LOWNDES-ELMORE-MONTGOMERY-MACON-
BULLOCK-LEE-RUSSELL-PIKE-BARBOUR-
324 PM CDT THU OCT 18 2012

...RED FLAG WARNING IN EFFECT FROM NOON TO 7 PM CDT FRIDAY...

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN BIRMINGHAM HAS ISSUED A RED FLAG
WARNING...WHICH IS IN EFFECT FROM NOON TO 7 PM CDT FRIDAY. 

* WINDS...WILL BE FROM THE WEST 10 TO 15 MPH WITH GUSTS UP TO 20
  MPH.

* RELATIVE HUMIDITY...WILL DROP AS LOW AS 20 PERCENT.

* IMPACTS...A DRY AIRMASS AND WINDY CONDITIONS COMBINED WILL
  RESULT IN CRITICAL FIRE WEATHER CONDITIONS. OUTDOOR BURNING IS
  NOT RECOMMENDED.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

A RED FLAG WARNING MEANS THAT CRITICAL FIRE WEATHER CONDITIONS
ARE EITHER OCCURRING NOW...OR WILL SHORTLY. A COMBINATION OF
STRONG WINDS...LOW RELATIVE HUMIDITY...AND WARM TEMPERATURES WILL
CREATE EXPLOSIVE FIRE GROWTH POTENTIAL. 

FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ON THE FIRE CONDITIONS...PLEASE
CONTACT THE ALABAMA FORESTRY COMMISSION AT
WWW.FORESTRY.ALABAMA.GOV.

&&

$$
2 follow-up statements
424 
WWUS84 KBMX 190825
RFWBMX

URGENT - FIRE WEATHER MESSAGE
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BIRMINGHAM AL
325 AM CDT FRI OCT 19 2012

...DRY AND BREEZY CONDITIONS ACROSS THE SOUTHEAST EXPECTED FRIDAY
AFTERNOON...

ALZ037-038-041>050-200000-
/O.CON.KBMX.FW.W.0017.121019T1700Z-121020T0000Z/
TALLAPOOSA-CHAMBERS-AUTAUGA-LOWNDES-ELMORE-MONTGOMERY-MACON-
BULLOCK-LEE-RUSSELL-PIKE-BARBOUR-
325 AM CDT FRI OCT 19 2012

...RED FLAG WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT FROM NOON TODAY TO 7 PM CDT
THIS EVENING FOR COUNTIES ALONG AND SOUTH OF INTERSTATE 85...

A RED FLAG WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT FROM NOON TODAY TO 7 PM CDT
THIS EVENING. 

* WINDS...WILL BE FROM THE WEST 10 TO 15 MPH WITH GUSTS UP TO 25 
  MPH.

* RELATIVE HUMIDITY...WILL DROP AS LOW AS 21 PERCENT.

* IMPACTS...A DRY AIRMASS AND WINDY CONDITIONS COMBINED WILL 
  RESULT IN CRITICAL FIRE WEATHER CONDITIONS. OUTDOOR BURNING IS 
  NOT RECOMMENDED. 

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

A RED FLAG WARNING MEANS THAT CRITICAL FIRE WEATHER CONDITIONS
ARE EITHER OCCURRING NOW...OR WILL SHORTLY. A COMBINATION OF
STRONG WINDS...LOW RELATIVE HUMIDITY...AND WARM TEMPERATURES WILL
CREATE EXPLOSIVE FIRE GROWTH POTENTIAL.

FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ON THE FIRE CONDITIONS...PLEASE
CONTACT THE ALABAMA FORESTRY COMMISSION AT WWW.FORESTRY.ALABAMA.GOV.

&&

$$

27
324 
WWUS84 KBMX 191707
RFWBMX

URGENT - FIRE WEATHER MESSAGE
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BIRMINGHAM AL
1207 PM CDT FRI OCT 19 2012

...DRY AND BREEZY CONDITIONS ACROSS THE SOUTHEAST EXPECTED THIS AFTERNOON...

ALZ037-038-041>050-200000-
/O.CON.KBMX.FW.W.0017.000000T0000Z-121020T0000Z/
TALLAPOOSA-CHAMBERS-AUTAUGA-LOWNDES-ELMORE-MONTGOMERY-MACON-
BULLOCK-LEE-RUSSELL-PIKE-BARBOUR-
1207 PM CDT FRI OCT 19 2012

...RED FLAG WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 7 PM CDT THIS EVENING
FOR COUNTIES ALONG AND SOUTH OF INTERSTATE 85...

A RED FLAG WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 7 PM CDT THIS EVENING.

* WINDS...WILL BE FROM THE WEST 10 TO 15 MPH WITH GUSTS UP TO 20 
  MPH.

* RELATIVE HUMIDITY...WILL DROP AS LOW AS 20 PERCENT.

* IMPACTS...A DRY AIRMASS AND WINDY CONDITIONS COMBINED WILL 
  RESULT IN CRITICAL FIRE WEATHER CONDITIONS. OUTDOOR BURNING IS 
  NOT RECOMMENDED. 

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

A RED FLAG WARNING MEANS THAT CRITICAL FIRE WEATHER CONDITIONS
ARE EITHER OCCURRING NOW...OR WILL SHORTLY. A COMBINATION OF
STRONG WINDS...LOW RELATIVE HUMIDITY...AND WARM TEMPERATURES WILL
CREATE EXPLOSIVE FIRE GROWTH POTENTIAL.

FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ON THE FIRE CONDITIONS...PLEASE
CONTACT THE ALABAMA FORESTRY COMMISSION AT
WWW.FORESTRY.ALABAMA.GOV.

&&

$$

The office that day

Everything else NWS Birmingham, AL issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Oct 17, 11:37 PM CDTSpecial Weather StatementBMXMarion38 min
Oct 18, 12:06 AM CDTSpecial Weather StatementBMXFayette, Lamar, Marion, Winston39 min
Oct 18, 12:38 AM CDTSpecial Weather StatementBMXFayette, Lamar, Marion, Walker, Winston67 min
Oct 18, 1:36 AM CDTSpecial Weather StatementBMXJefferson, Tuscaloosa39 min
Oct 18, 2:07 AM CDTSpecial Weather StatementBMXSumter38 min

Nearby

Red Flag Warnings in Alabama, 2012Every red flag warning in 2012

Sources

The product and its follow-ups from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service and Storm Prediction Center text; the sounding from the Mesonet's radiosonde archive.